Memorial book of Zolkiew
(Zhovkva, Ukraine)

50°04' / 23°58'

Translation of
Sefer Zolkiew

Editors: Nathan Michael Gelber, Y. Ben-Shem

Published in Jerusalem 1969

 

English Translation Prepared and Published by

Jacob Solomon Berger

Mahwah, New Jersey, USA 2023

 

Acknowledgments

 

Our sincere appreciation to Jacob Solomon Berger who has kindly donated
his original book to JewishGen for online presentation

Translations editing by Karen Leon

This is a translation of: Sefer Zolkiew (Memorial book of Zolkiew),
Editors: Nathan Michael Gelber, Y. Ben-Shem, The Encyclopedia of the Jewish Diaspora, Published: Jerusalem 1969 (H 844 columns)

Notes:
  • The complete translation of this book is also available here: Memorial book of Zolkiew
  • The original book can be seen online at the NY Public Library site: Zolkiew

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Foreword
 
Chronology of the Jews in Zolkiew N. M. Gelbar
The City and Its Chronology 1
The Beginnings of the Jewish Settlement 10
In the Days of Sobieski and Radziwill 16
Internal Life 29
   Community Organization 29
   The Heads of the Community 38
Rabbis, Dayanim, Maggidim, and Scholars 45
   Rabbis 45
   Dayanim, Torah Scholars, Orators 49
   Doctors and Pharmacists 57
Zolkiew in the Institutions of Autonomy 58
Sabbateans in Zolkiew 65
Printing Houses 71
During the Time of the Austrian Occupation 75
The Enlightenment 98
During the Period of Emancipation 113
Zolkiew Families 135
The Jewish Printing Houses in Zolkiew Prof. M. Balaban 137
 
Chapters of Memories
Zolkiew in those Days Joseph Zvi Buber 143
   Rabbis and Teachers of Righteousness in Our City 143
   Torah and Prayer in the Belz Kloyz 148
   Kloyz Ziditshovichev in Zolkiew 156
   The Lubiler Kloyz 157
   The HaLebakrim Kloyz'l 158
   The Rebbe of Zolkiew 159
   Infants in the House of the Rebbe in the Kloyz of Belz 161
   The Tashlikh Ritual During Rosh Hashanah 163
   Sukkot Without an Etrog and Simchat Torah 164
   Working People 165
   Jews in the Town 166
   For the Sake of Wise Women 167
   The Jews of the Propination 169
   Jews in Banking 169
   The Activities of Assimilationists 170
   The People of the Villages 170
   The Bishops Come 171
   A Penny to the Pauper 171
The Zolkiew of Yesteryear Yitzhak Tzimerman 174
Passover at the House of the Gaon of Zolkiew Mordechai ben Yekhezkiel 180
Childhood Experiences Ze'ev Reitzes 181
Zolkiew In Prior Years Moshe Stern 183
Zolkiew and its Streets Zutra Rapaport 183
The Cemetery 193
Zolkiew in the Eyes of a Writer Sh(olom) An-ski 195
Sightseeing Through Zolkiew Shimon Samet 198
Simchat-Torah in Our City Henya Graubart (Singer) 205
 
Movements and Institutions 207
The ‘Seekers of Peace for Zion’ Meir Zimeles 208
The Heads of the Zionist Movement Y. Tz. Buber 210
The Heads of Mizrahi 212
The Agudah and the Mizrahi 213
The Poalei Zion Organization in Zolkiew Zvi Fish 216
The Beginnings of HaShomer HaTzair in Zolkiew Penina Netzer (Katz) 216
The Branch of HaShomer Hatzair Shoshana Selakh (Harbster) 218
Israel, the Land of Labor Michael Lichter 221
Regarding the Student Youth in Our City Meir Lifschitz 226
The Organization of Stam HeHalutz in Zolkiew Zutra Rapaport 230
With ‘Dror’ in Zolkiew Yaakov Ne'eman (Neumark) 236
A Ship on a Mountain A. Sh. Juris 238
The Revisionist Movement in Zolkiew Pinchas Gils 240
The BETA”R Branch in Zolkiew Batya Felsenstein (Zimeles) 242
The Drama Club in Zolkiew Meir Melman 243
The ‘Ladies Auxiliary’ in Zolkiew Henya Graubart (Zinger) 247
The Management of the School by Nuns Tova Altschuler (Eikhl) 249
The Orphanage in Zolkiew Tzilina Koninsky (Lisfeller) 250
A Trade School for Girls Batya Felsenstein (Zimeles) 253
 
Personalities 255
R' Nachman Krochmal F. Lakhover 256
A Letter from the Year of Independence A. Ya'ari 262
The Hand of Joseph Sh”ai Agnon 264
And this is the Style of His Headstone Sh”ai Agnon 266
R' Itzik'l Zolkiewer Ze'ev Zahar 267
R' Yitzhak Isaac of Zolkiew D. Kh. 269
R' Alexander Schur D. Kh. 270
The Zolkiew Genius Dov Sadan 272
The Scribe Joseph Chaim Brenner in Zolkiew Yaakov Ne'eman (Neumark) 284
The Portrait of a Man from Zolkiew Rachel Kaldor (Eikhl) 285
The Rebbetzin Rabinovich of the Rokeach Family Shoshana Selakh (Herbster) 287
The Portrait of a Family Aryeh Acker 289
Two Families Y. D. Zahar (Zubl) 290
From Father's House Mordechai Astman 293
‘Tall’ Meir and Zisha ‘Klezmer’ Zutra Rapaport 295
The ‘Credit Union Cooperative’ in Zolkiew Rachel Kaldor (Eikhl) 298
The Furrier Trade in Zolkiew Zutra Rapaport 299
Kulikovo, a Small Town Beside Zolkiew Dr. Noah Griss 301
   A. The ‘Just Sentence’ of Kulikovo 301
   B. Moshe from Rawa-Ruska 302
   C. The Hebrew Teacher 302
   D. My Family Members 303
   E. It is Hard to be a Student 305
From Hebrew Poetry Moshe Oliphant 306
   On the Mountains of Zion 306
   To Him they knew… 306
 
The Holocaust and Destruction 337
Eli, Eli 338
The Oath of the Covenant of the Hearts Uri Zvi Greenberg 340
In Memory of the Martyrs Zutra Rapaport 340
The First News Joseph Rosenberg 341
Aid for Refugees in Zolkiew Moshe Herman 443
The Extermination of Zolkiew Jewry Gershon Taft 344
   1. The First Assaults 344
   2. The Judenrat and Its Activities 353
   3. The First Aktion 354
   4. The Social and Cultural Supervision 357
   5. The Activities of Education and Culture 360
   6. Economic Life 362
   7. The Second Aktion in November 1942 363
   9. Liquidation of the Ghetto 372
The End 375
Zolkiew During the Days of the Soviet Occupation Benzion Benshalom 376
Zolkiew in its Decline Joseph Rosenberg 379
Letters from the Ghetto 394
   1. A letter from Milek and Lunek Wolf – June 4, 19431 394
   2. A letter from Benzion Wolf, from Zolkiew to the Pader-Uradner Ghetto in the Janowski Camp (Lvov) 395
   3. A letter from Milek Wolf of Zolkiew sent from the Janowski Camp (Lvov) 396
   4. A Letter from Zolkiew by Milek Wolf from the Janowski Camp 396
   5. A letter from Lunek Wolf of Zolkiew sent From the Janowski Camp (Lvov) 397
   6. A letter from Milek Wolf of Zolkiew from the Janowski Camp (Lvov) 399
   7. A letter from Genya Leiner to her brother Mundek 400
   8. A letter to Bernard Fachman, in a POW Camp in Germany from his brother in Zolkiew From His Brother in Zolkiew 402
Aktion Judenfrei Miriam Heller 403
The Beginning of the Rule of the German Conquerors Chaya Graubart 404
   1. The First Encounters 403
   2. The Appearance of the City After the Retreat of the Germans 407
Zolkiew, My Alienated City Rachel Kaldor (Eikhl) 408
Testimony: 1. Witness Collection No. 1213 Giza Ptarniker 409
In the ‘Bunker’ Rachel Zimner of the Hecht Family 410
Number 794/1 1892 Joseph Hochner 412
   1. The City of Zolkiew 412
   2. The Relationship to the Jewish Populace During the Conquest 413
   3. The First Methods of Oppression 414
   4. The Ghetto 415
   5. Economic Life 415
   6. Liquidation of the Ghetto 416
Our House is Transformed into a Bunker Michael Melman 419
From the Depths Klara Kramer (Schwartz) 425
To the Memories of Those No Longer Here 534
The ADMo'R Shmuel Rabinovich ז”ל Zvi Oster 534
Dr. Meir Wachs ז”ל Antonina Shtraich (Wachs) 536
Pap’keh Fish Klara Kramer (Schwartz) 537
Sender Lifschitz ז”ל Meir Lifschitz 538
Wolf Lichtenberg ז”ל 538
Berisz Ettinger ז”ל 539
Moshe Michael Rad ז”ל 540
Moshe Katz ז”ל 540
Moshe Sobol ז”ל 541
Mendl Metzger, ז”ל 541
The Young Ladies in our City 542
Klara Apfel ז”ל 542
Fried’ka Shtiller ז”ל 543
Chaya Zinger ז”ל 543
Regina Orlander ז”ל 544
Itta Vitlin, ז”ל 545
Sarah Orlander ז”ל 545
Feiga Baumwohl ז”ל 545
Brunya Cohen ז”ל 546
Ephraim Waldman (son of Borsz and Rivka) ז”ל 546
Shammai Rapaport ז”ל Zutra Rapaport 547
R’ Zalman Shapiro ז”ל Shoshana Selakh (Harbster) 548
What Zolkiew Looks Like Today Shimon Samet 549
‘The Organization of Zolkiew Émigrés’ in Israel Zutra Rapaport 557
A. In the Land 557
B. In the Diaspora 562
In Memory of Those Who Died in Israel 566
Ephraim Waldman (son of Zysza and Feiga) ז”ל Z. R. 566
Malka Razieli (Schweitzer) ז”ל Z. R. 567
Zolkiew Scions Who Passed Away in the Land 567
 
The List of Martyrs 569
The Inscription on the Headstone 572
Index of Illustrations 573

 

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